This post is about all the mindless Horde.
No, not the 95% of the furiously keyboard turning opposition, the other 5%…
Their pets.
STFU!
Hunters and Warlocks, even Mages, love healers. We are easy targets
While their over armored buddies are taking one in the face for their side, they like to try and even the odds.
/tar healer
/send pet
If they are close enough and not yet under pressure from your side, they will also take a few pot shots. Nothing serious you understand, a few dots here, a few dots there.
Foolishly they don’t give us their full attention. Our damage dealers are closing in, and there’s honor kills to be made.
Just one problem dear Hordling, our job is to reduce your honor kills by keeping our side alive.
Negate rather than Obliterate
All we need to do is negate your pathetic attacks on us and we are free to save the day.
Shaman have a huge advantage here, we have a few tools and ridiculously simple tactics to stay alive and keep our plate lugging and fireball throwing team mates farming your honor.
So, some simple ones before we get onto our secret weapon.
Back up buddy
1st up, as a healer your job is to heal your team mates. If the ranged opposition are hitting you, you are probably too close to the action. You don’t need to heal the enemy’s back line, you need to heal your front line.
Get out of their range!
Heal thyself
You can self heal you know! Sure keeping the damage dealers alive is important, but…
- They are a dime a dozen, and
- You can’t keep them alive (for long) while taking a dirt nap.
A quick LHW, herbal heal or draenei heal will allow you the time to clean up the healing mess.
Cleanse thyself
As I mentioned earlier, the opposition generally suffer from Alzheimer’s. They dot you and move on chuckling as the mentally add an honor kill, you are forgotten until they realize the guy that is pummeling them is getting heals from… you… Ohh too late, too bad, so sad…
A quick cleanse or two will remove the dots, curses, bad luck, etc from you and allow you to focus fully on your team mates… You may not even need a heal!
Secret weapon
Now for the secret weapon… Well it’s not that secret, it’s in the title of this post and it’s a reasonably well known totem.
The secret is no one expects the Spanish inquisition! Ohh I mean the Stoneclaw Totem, not in a BG anyway.
That’s a PvE totem Squidly you douchebag!
Newsflash: There are NPCs in BGs. There are wolves, rams (why can’t Hunters tame Rams?), there are NPC guards, and there’s…
PETS!
Pets are dumb!
Well they are only as smart as their handlers. If their handler sets and forgets, you can make the pet forget too!
Pet gnawing on your crown jewels while you are trying to heal…? Play fetch, throw that dog a stick!
Drop your Stoneclaw Totem, step away from that big red kitty, cleanse those dots, heal thyself and save the day!
All being well, your healed damage dealers are closing on the pet handler, who not only has more to think about than finishing you off, but is about to lose that pet when their health reaches the miserable total of 0.
The pet was never a concern!
Fluffy ran off to play in the park with your stick, no one took damage from it, not you, not the squishy Mage, not the overwhelmed plate wearer. When it’s master got tired of living, the pet ran off to the spirit healer as well. Unless it’s master remembers how you, a healer, just humiliated him, the pet won’t be back.
So:
- Keep your team mates up
- Keep yourself up
- Take one of the opposition forces out of the game.
Gnomer and Out, Squidly and Stout!
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http://gnomeaggedon.net/2009/10/16/
squidly’s-shaman-pvp-tips-3-stoneclaw-totem/
Alas, this does not seem to work well at level 80. Especially against DK ghouls. Either that or someone broke mine. About half the time or maybe a little more, they just resist and keep attacking me (as opposed to being redirected back on me by their owners, which, let’s face it, happens maybe once every 30 or so times).
I had noticed less success now that I am bottom of the bracket level wise… must level more
It works really well against totem killing rogues, though, especially if you drop Earthbind once or twice first so they just attack without paying attention.
For an added boost, you can grab up Glyph of Stoneclaw Totem. It gives you a bubble when you drop it, which gives some extra buffer room to heal others and not waste time healing yourself.
nice thinking
I use the Stoneclaw Totem glyph as well, and it’s very important to use it at the proper time, rather than just throw it out every time the cooldown is up. Usually if a pet’s on me and nothing else I just treat it as an extra proc for my water shield; nothing pisses disc priests and trees like you outlasting their mana because one of their teammates left Fluffy on you like a mini-innervate.
My favorite thing by far, however, is seeing a DK pop his Army. Popping Earth Elemental in response can keep them all rounded up and off of me, even 1vs1.
good point… having your enemy be your mana battery would make it worthwhile holding off on the totem.
I would like to make some DK’s cry… I am going to keep this in mind…
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